They way they slither leaves many people cringing

Talent Gore Lifestyle Writer
Snakes have been symbols of fear and hostility to most human societies
throughout the ages, largely due to their perceived deceit of Adam and
Eve to eat the forbidden fruit in the biblical Garden of Eden, as well
as to the general lack of knowledge and appreciation of snake biology
and behaviour.

Snakes and Africans have never really mixed, particularly in
Zimbabwe, the only people that have been known to be on “friendly” terms
with snakes are those believed to be prone to witchcraft tendencies.

The atmosphere when a “normal” person and a snake accidentally meet
is expected to be one characterised by fear and hostility, as such,
people try by all means to avoid creating room in their homes for
snakes.

In recent years, snake keeping and snake handling has become some
sort of a lifestyle for people to the extent that people visit snake
farms just to get a glimpse of how it feels like to hold a snake or put
in over shoulders.

There is also a new spot called Msinje Farm, 30km from Harare along
Shamva road where snake junkies visit to interact with snake and other
reptiles which are available on the farm.

The farm has been receiving overwhelming response from locals who
visit the area every weekend to interact with different reptiles
particularly snakes.

At the farm, they allow visitors to hold the snakes and take
pictures, they also have experienced guide who is knowledgeable on all
the snakes.

While some people have vowed never to interact with snakes some have
actually created a living out of snake handling and some are actually
keeping this vicious reptile as pets.

Some worship it as a sacred animal, and to even think of harming or
removing the python, without consulting the local authorities or
ancestors, may land you in some serious hot water

Looking somewhat young for his age, Chawatama Marimo chronicled how his love for rescuing snakes and other creatures came about.

Chawatama Marimo with a python around his neck

“I started handling while living out in the bush on our family mine in 1991-92 Chawa said.

For the past 20 years, Chawa has travelled the width and breadth of
the country, rescuing snakes and other creatures that stray into homes.
He has since lost count of the number of animals and snakes that he has
rescued and returned to the wild.

“I know that people hate snakes but God created them for a purpose.
Snakes only attack humans when they are cornered, otherwise they are
beautiful creatures that should be left alone,” added Chawa.

“While other cultures appreciate the role that snakes play in the
environment we are far from understanding why these creatures where
slotted into the jigsaw puzzle of nature.

“They play a crucial role in controlling pests that would otherwise
overrun us, they are the natural fumigation department of our planet.

“Snakes also prey on each other so they in essence control each
other’s numbers and by killing one a large snake in an area you have
actually caused an imbalance that we can’t comprehend.”

He disputed claims that snakes are associated with witchcraft.

“In our Culture snakes are viewed as evil and associated with
witchcraft, I personally have not seen an evidence of so called voodoo
snakes in all my years of catching snakes in people’s properties,” he
said.

“People have said a lot of things about me but I’m not fazed by it at
all, my goal is to educate my fellow brothers and sisters because I
believe nothing was made by accident and everything exists for a
purpose. I always say that if all the snakes were to disappear the human
race would soon follow.”

Nigel Horwe with a snake on his neck at Msinje Farm

In the African context, a snake appearing in a dream can symbolise a
person we don’t trust, when snakes show themselves, we often see their
true colours.

Snakes often appear in the grass in our dreams, or nightmares can be a
metaphor for someone who has been hiding something, and whose
intentions are far from honourable.

Self-taught, he has devised new ways of easily catching snakes and
other reptiles. Chawa says conditions in most urban areas attract big
and venomous snakes.

Chawa, who was bitten on numerous occasions by both venomous and
non-venomous snakes, said catching snakes is an “art” and is not afraid
to die from snake bites.

“Why should I be afraid of death? Eventually we are all going to die
at some point. I was once admitted to a local hospital after I was
bitten but that experience taught me to be more focused. I was careless
that day and I paid for it.”

According to Chawa, a lot of factors are taken into account when one is bitten by a snake.

“It depends on the type of snake, where the person has been bitten,
the amount of venom deposited into the body and the general health of
the victim.

There are a lot of misconceptions regarding snakes and chameleons,” said the famed adventurer.

In other cultures, snakes were represented in connection with the
healing art in Babylon, Egypt and Palestine and are still twined round
the rods which symbolise our present day medical profession.

Snakes, particularly the python, play an important part in certain
cultural histories, some tribes and areas revere it as a god, and across
many African cultural backgrounds, it is the serpent that God rode
while creating the earth, and after creating the world, the python
curled around the equator, and holds the earth together.

Zimbabwe Today is an independent online newspaper that showcases all the news from Zimbabwe by Zimbabweans for Zimbabweans across the world. In the spirit of building a new Zimbabwe, we promote and support free speech, hence all the news you will read at Zimbabwe Today is uncensored, unbiased and uncontrolled. Our content is submitted by Zimbabwe community. Material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express written permission from Zimbabwe Today.